I will sing the wondrous story

I will sing the wondrous story. Francis Harold Rowley* (1854-1952). Written in 1886, during Rowley’s pastorate at North Adams, Massachusetts (1884-92). Rowley was asked by his assistant minister, Peter Bilhorn (1865-1936), who was a fine musician, to write a hymn for Bilhorn to set to music. Rowley responded overnight with this text, which began ‘Can’t you sing the wondrous story’, for which Bilhorn then wrote the tune, later called WONDROUS STORY. Text and tune were sent to Ira D. Sankey*, who made alterations to the text before publishing the hymn in Gospel Hymns No. 5 (1887) and subsequently in Sacred Songs and Solos (edition of 1888). Different books have chosen to follow Sankey or (as...